College Basketball: Villanova has hands full with North Carolina

Villanova's Maurice Sutton (25), Tony Chennault (5) and JayVaughn Pinkston (22) celebrate from the bench during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Georgetown, Wednesday, March 6, 2013, in Philadelphia. Villanova won 67-57. (AP Photo/Michael Perez)

RADNOR — When Villanova’s name popped up on the screen during Sunday’s NCAA Tournament selection show, seniors Mouphtaou Yarou and Maurice “Mo” Sutton were the most satisfied men in the room.

This was it for Yarou and Sutton, their last chance to play in an NCAA Tournament.

“Every senior in this program, Scottie (Reynolds), Corey Fisher, took their team to the NCAA Tournament,” the 6-10 center said. “I’m happy we were able to do that.”

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Sutton was elated, too, but for more than personal reasons. Sutton was a redshirt on the team that went to the Final Four in 2009, a redshirt freshman on the 2010 team that lost to St. Mary’s (Calif.) in the second round and a redshirt sophomore of the squad that tied the program record with its seventh consecutive trip to the Big Dance in 2011.

“It means a lot to me to be able to get this program back to where we were,” the 6-11 reserve forward/center said. ”To be able to do that is a feeling of accomplishment.”

Win or lose to eighth-seeded North Carolina (24-10) Friday night in the second round of the NCAA South Regional in Kansas City (7:20 p.m., TNT) the legacy for Yarou and Sutton is that they helped the Wildcats (20-13) get back to the NCAA Tournament after a one-year absence and, hopefully, laid the ground work for more tournament appearances in the future.

And they did so in diametrically different ways. Yarou did it on the floor as one of Villanova’s leading scorer (9.7 ppg.) and top rebounder (7.8), while Sutton led from the background as his minutes diminished. Sutton went from being a starter in nine consecutive games where he averaged nearly 20 minutes per game to a little-used reserve who averaged less than four minutes per outing.

“To have a senior like Mo who’s not playing a lot and still have a great attitude, bring it every day, that’s as hard to do as what Mouph is doing, being the go-to guy and leading on the floor,” Villanova coach Jay Wright said. “Both of them have been great this year.”

Sutton’s presence has been especially significant in the locker room and at practice, where he has become a vocal leader.

“Mo was on the Final Four team so we listen to him,” Yarou said.

“I don’t like to put myself on the spot and say I’m the talker on this team,” Sutton said, “but if I feel something needs to be said, I say it.”

The emphasis against the Tar Heels is to take care of the basketball and defend the 3-point line, something the Wildcats have struggled with this season. Villanova is No. 323 (out of 345 teams) in turnovers per game (15.7) and No. 296 in 3-point field goal percentage defense (36.6). The Wildcats are 4-8 when they turn the ball over 18 or more times, 6-8 when they allow nine or more 3-point field goals and 3-6 when the opposition has double-digit triples.

That does not bode well against a North Carolina team that likes to force turnovers and take threes. The Tar Heels rank 14th nationally in scoring (77.2 ppg.), No. 41 in 3-point field goal percentage (37.4), No. 52 in 3-point field goals made per game (7.5) and among the national leaders in turnovers forced per game (15.3).

“This is a totally different Carolina style of play,” Wright said. “It’s really based on speed, quickness and perimeter shooting. Even in their half-court offense, they move the ball quickly and screen quickly. Everything’s just fast. They’ve always gone up and down, but they’ve gone up and down with size. This is really quickness and speed and 3-point shooting … I was shocked to see them with four guards.”

North Carolina is 8-3 since it switched to a smaller lineup in a 73-68 loss at Duke Feb. 13. The only losses were to the Blue Devils and two to ACC champ Miami.

“We have to handle this style of play better than we have all year,” Wright said. “This is what’s given us trouble.”

The Wildcats have to figure out a way to solve those problems in the NCAA Tournament and that is never an easy task, but at least they’re dancing, something that means a great deal to Yarou and Sutton.

“We just have to go out and play our game,” Sutton said. “It’s a chance to play one more game and there are a lot of teams out there that would like to have that opportunity.”

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NOTES: This is the 15th meeting between the Wildcats and Tar Heels and the sixth in the NCAA Tournament. North Carolina leads the all-time series, 10-4, and has a 4-1 advantage in the tournament including wins in the 2009 national semifinals (83-69) and the 2006 Syracuse regional semifinal (67-66). Villanova’s only tournament win over North Carolina was a 56-44 triumph in the 1985 Southeast Region final. The Wildcats went on to win their only national title that year.